Mastertronic and Abstraction Games have announced an August 29 release date for The Chaos Engine. Originally developed for the Amiga computer by The Bitmap Brothers, the classic top-down shooter will be available for Mac, Windows, and Linux PCs.

“This really feels like the right time to bring back The Chaos Engine” says Mike Montgomery, one of the founding members of The Bitmap Brothers. “There are many fond memories of The Chaos Engine and I wanted to make sure that the game was true to the original without losing its charm during the restoration process. The option to play in the original ‘Classic’ mode with the added option to play in ‘Enhanced mode’ with its refined pixel-perfect finish is a clever way to satisfy all enthusiasts! It feels a completely natural transition to the PC.”

“We grew up with the Amiga and those classic Bitmap games were the inspiration for a lot of us who went on to work in games and development. For many of us, The Chaos Engine was our first taste of co-op and was a platform that incited our love of top down shooters,” says Ralph Egas, CEO of Abstraction Games. “The Chaos Engine holds such fond memories for so many people and it stands the test of time and we were determined to restore the game to its full and amazing pixel-perfect glory, with a couple of cool enhancements!”

Stuart Morton, Executive Producer at Mastertronic says ‘‘The Chaos Engine holds very fond memories for so many people and so many great games have been ruined by bad remakes. We didn’t want to remake it. It is a great game and we found very quickly when we went back and played the original that the gameplay still holds up very well. A lot of fondly-remembered games are pretty disappointing when you go back and look at them now, but The Chaos Engine still plays beautifully today ."

The early ‘90s top-down shooter has been lovingly restored by Abstraction Games, the team who recently brought Hotline Miami to the PS3 and Vita, in close consultation with Mike Montgomery, one of the founding members of The Bitmap Brothers. Abstraction Games have been entrusted with rebuilding The Bitmap Brothers game from the ground up in its original form, as well as throwing in an alternative mode with a few extra enhancements.

The original version of The Chaos Engine was one of the first games to introduce a skill system in action-adventure games, helping players improve their characters and equip individualized weapons.

Prepare for the dark world of The Chaos Engine, a Victorian age of discovery and technology corrupted by a failed experiment with an early computer - the Chaos Engine.

Choose from six hard-nailed mercenaries, each with their own unique weapons and skills to combat the bizarre monstrosities created by the machine. Those who have the strength and the courage to overturn the Chaos Engine will be remembered.

Battle through four unique worlds in single-player or online and local co-op modes. Play in ‘Enhanced mode’ or ‘Classic mode’ with its original graphics and controls for the true Amiga experience. Steam Achievements will test the mettle of both new players and old fans. This restoration of the classic Amiga shooter includes all the intense gameplay of the original with enhanced graphics, controls and Steam features.